Dear boys and girls! Welcome to our conference. I am pleased to meet you here at our conference. But now please answer the questions:

1) Which is the deepest lake in the world?

2) Do you hear about lake Baikal?

3) What is Baikal famous for?

Today we are going to speak about Lake Baikal. We live near the purest lake in the world. We are proud of our region and of course of the lake.

Let me introduce our speakers.

1. Mudaev Geser “The tale of the Siberian Sea”.

2. Munkueva Erzhena“Legendary Lake Baikal will not die”.

3. Dashinimaev Timur “Baikal, the pearl of Siberia”.

4. Sambueva Irina “Lake Baikal”.

I want you to listen to our program. You will listen to these stories about Baikal. Try to understand everything and do some exercises.

II. The tale of the Siberian Sea

1. Read the words and translate:

gentle – тихий, знатный, славный

glorious – великолепный, чудесный, восхитительный

to mention – упоминать, ссылаться на

sable – соболь

seal – тюлень

shallow – мелкий

sheet – обширная поверхность

transparent – прозрачный, ясный

2. Listen to the text:

One of the first to mention Baikal was Marco Polo, the first of the Russians to cross it was the cossack Kurbat Ivanov. Some 300 years have passed since then and all these years the people have only admired the gentle beauty of Baikal, they have done their best to understand its mysteries. But even today one cannot say that we know all the secrets of this unique sheet of water. Baikal is 22 million years old. And it still remains a young lake. It is 1620 meters deep. Many seas are even considerably shallower. The lake contains four times as much water as the White Sea and contains 20% of the world's fresh water supply. To Siberians it is a glorious sea. The water of Baikal is amazingly clear, its transparency is 100 times greater than that of many other lakes, in fact it is legendary. There one finds the Baikal seal, golomyanka and of course omul. The delicate fish has always been a favourite with Siberians. Even the thought of omul salted or smoked or baked is mouthwatering. Many books have been written about the fauna of Baikal. No wonder, for there are about 18 900 different kinds of living creatures, big and small. In the taiga around Baikal you can see bear and deer, but the pride of the forest is the Barguzin sable, the only place in the whole world where it is found. This is the story about Baikal, the blue heart of Siberia.

3. Answer the questions:

Now after you have listened to the story say what information you’ve learned.

Who was the first to mention Baikal?

Who was the first of the Russians to cross Baikal?

How old is Lake Baikal?

How deep is the lake?

How much water does it contain?

Why do Siberians call Baikal a sea?

What fish live in the lake?

Do you like omul?

How many kinds of living creatures live in the lake?

What animals can you see in the taiga around Baikal?

Why is the Barguzin sabel so famous all over the world?

Have you been to Baikal?

What impressed you most of all? What makes Baikal unique?

III. Legendary lake Baikal will not die

Lake Baikal is beautiful and unique. But there is a certain danger of pollution because of the industrial development of the region.

1. Listen the words and translate:

alarming – тревожный

to die – умирать

to ensure – обеспечивать, гарантировать

figure – фигура, личность, цифра

to harnes – использовать (с качестве источника энергии)

interrelation – взаимосвязь

log-booming – сплав леса

majestic – величественный

observance – соблюдение

to refer – обращаться

sacred – священный, святой

urgent vicinity – крайне необходимый, поблизости, приблизительно

2. Listen to the text:

Siberians would never dream of calling Baikal a lake. They refer to it as their “sacred and glorious sea”. When one sails on its majestic waters it is easy to understand the feeling of the Buryat people to this wonderful gift of nature. Not so long ago scientists raised the alarming question – was Baikal, whose water is the purest in the world, becoming polluted? The interrelation of man and nature is one of the problems on which the development of society depends. In exploiting nature's wealth man has not always shown himself to be wise. For example, there was a time when fotests on our globe covered 7 000 million hectares, today the figure is only half that. Lake Baikal is no longer in danger of pollution, prompt measures taken to stop log – booming on the Selenga river and strict observance of cleaning operations in all industrial plants in the vicinity, have ensured that the waters of Baikal will remain clean and pure. More than 300 rivers flow into Baikal but only one, the angry Angara flows out. It has been harnessed to serve man by a chain of hydroelectric power stations, including the famous Bratsk.

3. Say what measures have been taken to prevent Baikal from pollution.

Do you think that the problem of nature protection is urgent?

Explain why.

IV. Baikal, the pearl of Siberia

1. Remember the words:

entire – полный, совершенный, сплошной

salmon – лосось

to sleigh – ехать на санях

2. Listen to the report:

Baikal is the largest lake in Eurassia (636 km long and almost 80 km wide), and it is the deepest lake in the world (1620 metres). The lake is one of the world's most impressive natural wonders, and rightfully so – Baikal is so large that all of the rivers on Earth combined would, take an entire year to fill it. Baikal is situated in a very beautiful place, surrounded by forests and the Barguzin Mountains. In the winter Baikal freezes over, with ice so thick that you can go sleighing on the lake. In the summer its crystal blue waters are transparent, to a depth of forty metres, and there are many seasonal wildflowers by the side of the lake. Boat tours during the warm months and hiking in the forest, along the streams and waterfalls of Baikal's parks, are very popular. The lake region is home to a great variety of plants and animals. Most of which – like nerpas and the omul salmon – are found nowhere else in the world. Lake Baikal long ago became famous for the purity of its water. Since 1992, Lake Baikal and the entire surrounding area have become a national park, and today Baikal is a naturalist's paradise and an idyllic holiday area. With fine beaches, excellent hiking, bird watching, and pleasure boating, Baikal is one of the most attractive tourist areas in Asia.

3. Form degrees of comparison:

attractive –

beautiful deep –

excellent –

famous –

fine –

great –

impressive –

large –

long –

popular –

thick –

transparent –

warm –

wide –

V. Lake Baikal

1. Listen to the report:

Baikal is one of the most beautiful lakes in the world. It is in the heart of Asia. It is twice as large as lake Ladoga. The area of this lake is as large as Belgium or Holland. Baikal is 636 kilometers long, from 25 km to 79 km wide and 1 741 m deep. It is the deepest lake in the world. Baikal has much water, its volume of water is more than the volume of the Baltic Sea. The water of Baikal is cold. It is colder than the water of many other lakes. Baikal is more beautiful than many other Siberian lakes. The scenery around its shores is as beautiful as that of the Caucasus. The climate here is colder than the climate of the Caucasus. More than 300 rivers flow into this lake and only one river the Angara, flows out. The river carries a tremendous volume of water, it is very powerful and deep, and has a very strong current, much stronger than the current of the Volga. That is why the Angara freezes later than lake Baikal.

2. Discussion.

Discuss the answers to these questions with your classmates.

Where do prefer going most of all: to the forest, to the bank of a river, to the shore of a lake or any other places? Why?

Why does ecological thinking have to be integrated into politics?

Do you enjoy watching animals or trapping and hunting them?

What can you say about relationship between man and nature?

VI. Let us sing a song

Brother – lakes

Though we’re from different lands But one the same goal unites usOn the shores of the lakes we liveBrother – lakes the name to them we give.

Our lakes are far away from each other, But our hearts are close to one another, While hiking over the ancient cliffs Baikal makes us great and close friends.

Refrain:

Oh, we must keep the lakes alive Oh, we must keep the lakes to thrive It's our sacred duty To keep for generations their beauty.

2.

We shall sail on Baikal watersWe shall sing a song of loveAnd the lake Baikal will surely humAnd nurse us as if in the cradle

The only and cherished dreamWill help us keep Baikal cleanProtect the woods, the brooks, the flowersAnd save the world itself at last.

3

There always be the waters clean There always be the shores in bloom, There will be no smoke in the sky And the lake Baikal will never die.

Only a year will quickly flyAnd near the Superior lake friends will meet againWe shall say our grandeur “Hi!”To the friends, the lake and the sky.

VII. Conclusion

Our conference is over. Thank you for your creativity. I am very glad and proud that you have shown excellent knowledge in the topic discussed. Thank you very much.